May 25, 2019

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Announcing the 2019 Guardians of Nature Benefit Gala!

Join us for an exciting evening in celebration of our Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter community and to honor two preeminent Open Space Champions, Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter members Enid Pearson and Emily Renzel, for their decades-long exemplary leadership in protecting local public open space and the San Francisco Bay.

Mix and mingle with your fellow Sierrans and community leaders, enjoy delicious food and wine, and bid to win select silent auction items and experiences.

Find more about the 2019 Guardians of Nature Benefit.

Photo Below: Emily Rensel (left) and Enid Pearson (right).

Don't Build on Redwood City's Salt Ponds

In light of Cargill and DMB’s renewed efforts to build in the Bay, we urge you to follow Mayor Ian Bain's lead and state publicly that you have no interest in changing the General Plan to allow building on the Cargill salt ponds.
Sign the petition here.

Photo: Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve.

20s - 30s! Join a moderate hike with great views of Silicon Valley, Monument Peak, Mount Diablo and Mount Hamilton.
Your Chapter Director will led this hike on June 8th in Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve: 7.5 miles, 1300 ft elevation gain. More information here.

Let go of your vehicle! It feels great to donate your vehicle. It's easy, free and supports the mission of your Loma Prieta Chapter. Call 844-6 SIERRA or 844-674-3772, or visit the CARS website. Important: tell CARS that you want to support the Loma Prieta Chapter.

Photo: thanks to the Loma Prieta Chapter's Day Hiking Outing Section for hosting their Chapter Director on their May 11th hike along the North San Mateo coast: 14.2 miles, 2694 ft elevation gain.

Outings Leadership Training: OLT101: June 6th
Required every two years for Sierra Club outings leaders

Basic Wilderness First Aid, June 15th: fulfills the (every two years) requirement for all Sierra Club outing leaders for day outings

Wilderness First Aid, June 15th & 16th: fulfills the (every two years) requirement for all Sierra Club outing leaders for overnight trips away from cars

San Jose Is A Better City This Week!

On May 21st, San Jose City Council unanimously approved the Downtown San Jose Design Standards and Guidelines for Bird Safe Design.
As San Jose grows in density and height, these Standards and Guidelines will help protect migratory birds along the riparian corridors of the Guadalupe River and Los Gatos Creek.
We saved a lot of birds and helped San Jose be a better place.
We thank Mayor Sam Liccardo and Council Member Raul Peralez for their leadership. We are also thankful to Council Members Sergio Jimenez, Dev Davis, Maya Esparza, Johnny Khamis, Sylvia Arenas and Vice Mayor Chappie Jones (and their staff) for their availability, attention and encouragement.
San Jose's Planning Commissioners John Leyba and Michelle Yesney deserve the Creative Thinking award. Their motion to include the 2013 voluntary bird safe design guidelines as mandatory for downtown was pivotal.
The San Jose Planning Department, especially planners Tim Rood and Leila Hakimizadeh made a sincere effort to get this right - thanks to them too?

Shani Kleinhaus, Co-Chair of Loma Prieta Chapter Wildlife Committee

San Joseans! Receive 100% Renewable Energy

Signing up for TotalGreen, San Jose Clean Energy's 100% renewable generation service, means your electricity will be generated from carbon-free wind and solar farms.
TotalGreen is a simple, cost-effective way for you to do even more to reduce your impact on our planet. Choosing TotalGreen will cost the average home about $5-10 more per month, about the same as a cup of coffee or two.
See Councilmember Raul Peralez' video.

From Joe Simitian, President, Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors

Dear Friend,

I encourage you to participate in a process that can determine the future of our community for decades to come.
As you may know, Stanford University is requesting a General Use Permit from the County of Santa Clara that would allow the University to develop an additional 3.5 million square feet for academic facilities and housing that would add more than 9,600 people to the campus.
The County may only grant the General Use Permit if the County finds the development will not negatively impact the community, including no negative impacts on traffic congestion, housing, and open space.
Here are some ways you can participate in this important process:
1. Like the County’s new Facebook page and share it with your neighbors to encourage them to stay up to date;
2. Attend the first Planning Commission Hearing on Thursday, May 30 from 6 to 8 pm at City of Palo Alto Council Chambers, 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto. Staff have posted documents for this meeting. You can also view the video of the May 9th Planning Commission meeting.

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo Invites you to a Town Hall Meeting

I will be holding a Town Hall Meeting on the issues of net neutrality, robocalls, and other communications issues on Thursday, May 30th, and it’s an honor to have FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel join us. We will be meeting at Villa Ragusa, at 35 South 2nd Street, Campbell from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m., and I hope you can join us on May 30th.
Please click HERE to RSVP. Space is limited, so please sign up in advance.

CUPERTINO: The City of Cupertino on May 2nd became the second municipality to adopt a resolution supporting State implementation of the Buy Clean California Act. The resolution was passed unanimously by members of Cupertino City Council at Tuesday’s council meeting. Signed into law in 2017, the Buy Clean California Act aligns State purchasing power with environmental goals. The law directs the State to purchase certain construction materials—structural steel, carbon steel rebar, flat glass, mineral wool insulation—from manufacturers that are among the cleaner manufacturers, as measured by greenhouse gas emissions.

The City of San José is exploring the development of a “reach code” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help San José reach its Climate Smart San José goals. A reach code is a local ordinance that would require new construction to achieve a certain level of performance above the 2019 CA Building Code that will be effective on January 1st, 2020.
The City will be hosting a series of charrettes to provide more background on the reach code, cover the development process and timeline, and gather stakeholder input. The first charrette will take place on May 29th from 5:30 – 7:30PM at City Hall (Wing Room 118/119). Please register in advance.
For more information visit the City’s reach code webpage.

Thanks,
Ken Davies, REM, Interim Deputy Director – Climate Smart San José

H2OH! San Jose Museum of Quits & Textiles, Apr 20 – Jul 14

Water - Every living thing depends on water to survive, and life hangs in the balance when this precious resource is squandered. The fiber artists in this exhibition combine environmental activism and art making to bring awareness to land use and water issues in California. Many of the pieces revolve around the effects of human activity on the availability and viability of the water around us. Enjoy this exhibit for its beauty, originality and ability to stir emotions.
- Mary Buxton, Loma Prieta Chapter Executive Committee Member

The Sierra Club has layers, which helps make us powerful!

Sierra Club National promotes and organizes national campaigns,

Sierra Club California organizes CA legislative initiatives, and

Your local Loma Prieta Chapter does all the local conservation work, but receives less than 20% of the membership dues which you pay to Sierra Club National, so your local donations are critical to support our effective local work in conservation, public education, environmental politics, and outings.

Did you join the Sierra Club to make a difference for our environment?

There are many ways to become a local environmental hero!

1. Volunteer by joining one our local conservation teams, or political action teams, or environmental education teams, or outings teams.

2. Volunteer as a Social Media Coordinator
You don't need to be an expert. You'll be provided all content and only need to post on a regular basis. Commitment is 2-3 hrs per week. See all our channels and opportunities listed below.

3. Volunteer as an Environmental Writer/Reporter
Commitment is 2 - 10 hours per week.
The Loma Prieta Chapter has done and is doing an incredible amount of conservation work, but while our conservation activist are busy doing the work, we need reporters to write about it. If you are interested in this impactful opportunity to investigate and explain local conservation, write to chapter.director@lomaprieta.sierraclub.org.

4. Donate: Join/Renew Membership,
Shop thru Amazon, Legacy/Planned Giving, Employer Matching, One Time Gift for our Education Programs, Donate a vehicle, Gifts of Stock

For more information, contact Chapter Director James Eggers at james.eggers@sierraclub.org or (650) 390-9604.

Social Media Channels for the Loma Prieta Chapter

MeetUp: Chapter conservation and education meetings (2438 members), Hiking events (4804 members), Day Hiking section (1401 members), Singleaires outing section (1289 members), Guadalupe Regional Group (450 members), Peak Climbing (365 members), Gay & Lesbian Sierrans (202 members), Black Mountain Hiking section (184 members);
NEW: Family Explorers (78 members), 20s - 30s (53 members)